The Mando clinics offer treatment of eating disorders using the Mandometer method. Mando recently won the procurement for treatment of eating disorders in Stockholm County Council. We had the opportunity to ask Cecilia Bergh, CEO and co-founder of Mando a few questions.
Hello Cecilia, you recently had the winning bid in a procurement in the Stockholm County Council, could you tell us more?
Mando won the public procurements for all of Stockholm because the evaluators judged the quality of Mando´s offering the highest. There were three tenders, for eating disorders in the Northern and Southern part of the County of Stockholm and for binge-eating disorders in central Stockholm. Binge-eating is the most common problem, as it is associated with overweight and obesity, which is the major threat to public health today.
What is the difference between Mandos method of treatment for eating disorders compared to those of others?
Mando´s treatment targets the patient´s eating behavior. Everybody who has a body weight problem also has a “disordered” eating behavior, that can be more or less ”serious”. The patients practice eating and fullness using Mandometer, a medical device that we develop continuously since 20 years. When the eating behavior normalizes, cognitions will change. We use motivational support to increase the patients´ self-esteem and we provide tools to alleviate negative consequences of the eating disorder. The weight and the health of the patients gradually normalize as eating behavior normalizes. We are happy to assist anyone who takes an interest in how to use Mandometer.
What will this mean for patients with eating disorders?
Mando will become the largest provider of care for eating disorders and binge-eating in the County of Stockholm starting in 2019. This breakthrough makes it possible for more patients, who most often are young women and men, to remit from their problems. The treatment of eating disorder now faces a paradigm shift and simultaneously the community will save expenses. It is to the benefit of all patients that treatment outcomes have played a greater role than in previous tenders.
What is the next step, what are the plans for the coming year
Eating disorders are common today because so many people are overweight. Obesity is the major threat to public health and to the budget of the community. Mando develops strategies for preventing young people from losing control over their weight. These are smartphone-based technologies allowing anyone at risk to maintain a normal eating behavior, “You are how you eat”, rather than what you eat, is the scientific idea behind the work.
